Lu Ping (), born in Kaohsiung in 1953, is a Taiwanese writer who writes under the pen name Ping Lu. Her writing encompasses a broad range of genres, including novels, essays, poems, commentary, and theater plays. She is also known in the Chinese-language world for her critique of social phenomenon, ranging from cultural development to gender issues and human rights. Over the past two decades, Ms. Lu has successfully established herself as a prominent novelist, columnist, and commentator in Taiwan.
Ping Lu (平路), born Lu Ping (路平) in Kaohsiung, is the recipient of many major literary awards, including National Award for Arts ãÂÂÃ¥ÂÂ家æÂÂèÂÂçÂÂãÂÂ, Taiwan Literature Award for Books éÂÂå ¸çÂÂ, and Golden Tripod Awards for PublicationsãÂÂéÂÂé¼ÂçÂÂãÂÂ. Holding a B.A. in psychology from National Taiwan University and an M.A. in statistics from the University of Iowa, she has served as editor of China Times ãÂÂãÂÂä¸ÂÃ¥ÂÂæÂÂå ±ãÂÂã and part-time instructor of journalism at National Taiwan University. From 2003 to 2009 she was Taiwan's ambassador at large and Chairperson of the Kwang Hwa Information and Culture Center in Hong Kong. An accomplished writer, novelist, and columnist, she has authored many books since 1984, including short-story collections Death in a CornfieldãÂÂçÂÂç±³ç°ä¹ÂæÂȋÂÂand Monica's DiaryãÂÂèÂÂ妮å¡æÂ¥è¨ÂãÂÂ, novels Taiwan TrilogyâÂÂEast & BeyondãÂÂæ±⽠ä¹Âæ±ãÂÂ, ILHA FormosaãÂÂå©Âå¨Âä¹Â島ãÂÂ, PassingãÂÂ夢éÂÂä¹Âå°ãÂÂ, and, The River Darkens ãÂÂé»Âæ°´ã and essay collections Heart MandalaãÂÂè¢Âé²çÂÂå¿ÂãÂÂ, The GapsãÂÂéÂÂéÂÂãÂÂ, and travel-themed work, Antarctica: South of Myself ãÂÂÃ¥ÂÂ極÷極åÂÂãÂÂ.
Ms. Lu graduated from the Department of Psychology, National Taiwan University, and gained a master's degree from the University of Iowa. While working as a statistician in the United States, she won first prize with her short story "Death in a Cornfield" in the 1983 United Daily News fiction competition. Her other works also won her many prizes, including a prize in prose and a prize in dramatic composition. In 2002, she published a novel about the death of a famous Taiwanese singer Teresa Teng entitled "When Will You Come Again?" (Chinese title: ä½ÂæÂ¥åÂÂÃ¥ÂÂä¾Â).
Wu San-lien Literary AwardãÂÂå³ä¸Âé£çÂÂæÂÂå¸çÂÂãÂÂ, 2016
The Golden Tripod Awards for Publications ãÂÂéÂÂé¼ÂçÂÂãÂÂ, 2018, for the book Heart MandalaãÂÂè¢Âé²çÂÂå¿ÂãÂÂ
The 22th National Award for Arts ãÂÂÃ¥ÂÂ家æÂÂèÂÂçÂÂãÂÂ, 2021
Taiwan Literature Award for Books ãÂÂéÂÂå ¸çÂÂãÂÂ, 2021, for the book The GapsãÂÂéÂÂéÂÂãÂÂ
Of her literary works, "Love and Revolution" (Chinese title: è¡ÂéÂÂ天涯; The Chinese version first came out in 1995, while the English version was published by Columbia University Press in 2006)attracted the most attention. Ms. Lu re-imagines the lives of Sun Yat-sen and Soong Ching-ling, a legendary couple in modern China. She not only explores their marital relations, including their failings and desires, but also mentions Sun Yat-sen's political career and Soong Ching-ling's feelings of isolation and loneliness after her husband died. As Perry Link pointed out in his article entitled "Chinese Shadows" (published on November 16, 2006, by The New York Review), Ms. Lu also tries to find in Soong Ching-ling "the person buried under all the layers of image-making" and to "reconstruct a credible portrait" of the famous woman. He also said Ms. Lu "succeeds in showing the ordinary and sometimes repugnant details of Qingling's life," and that she "may or may not be accurate about Qingling's inner life, but she certainly writes with honesty and with penetration."
Her more recent works includes fiction "The River Darkens" (Chinese title: é»Âæ°´; published in 2015) and autobiographical essays collection "Heart Mandala" (Chinese title: å¦é²çÂÂå¿Â; published in 2017; winner of the 2018 Golden Tripod Awards for Publications éÂÂé¼ÂçÂÂ). The River Darkens (é»Âæ°´) has been published in a German-language edition. The release received a major review in Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.
In 2025, Ping Lu published her first travel-themed work, Antarctica: South of Myself ãÂÂÃ¥ÂÂ極÷極åÂÂãÂÂ. The book moves beyond the conventions of a travel guide or geographical account, presenting a reflective narrative that interweaves memory, time, aspiration, and loss. In the same year, Rye Field Publishing reissued her essay collections Heart Mandala ãÂÂè¢Âé²çÂÂå¿Âã and The Gaps ãÂÂéÂÂéÂÂãÂÂ. Together with Antarctica: South of Myself, the three volumes were promoted as the âÂÂPing Lu Trilogy of the Inner World.âÂÂ
In June 2025, Ping Lu participated in the Seoul International Book Fair, where Taiwan was featured as Guest of Honor for the first time. Alongside Wu Ming-yi and Tung Shu-ming, she represented Taiwanese literature through discussions addressing historical reflection, nature writing, and ethnic perspectives. As one of the featured Taiwanese authors, she also delivered a lecture in the âÂÂTaiwan Sensibilityâ series organized by the National Museum of Taiwan Literature, titled âÂÂThe Novel: Mirrors within Mirrors and National History,â examining the intersections of individual memory and national history.
Scholarly attention has also been paid to Ping LuâÂÂs novel East and Beyond ãÂÂæ±æ¹ä¹Âæ±ãÂÂ, with academic analysis situating the work in discussions of gender, romance, and geopolitics in cross-strait literary relations. One study titled âÂÂGendering Cross-Strait Relations: Romance and Geopolitics in Li AngâÂÂs Seven-Generation Predestined Relationship and Ping LuâÂÂs East and Beyondâ examines how the narrative form of romance is used to explore personal desire, Taiwanese history, and cross-strait socio-political interactions in Ping LuâÂÂs novel, arguing that such literary strategies offer nuanced insights into both gender and geopolitical themes in Taiwanese literature.
Prior to becoming the director of Kwang Hwa Information and Cultural Center in January 2003, Ms. Lu had worked as an editorial writer for The China Times, spent many years lecturing on such subjects as feminism, cultural criticism, and news commentary at National Taiwan University and Taipei National University of the Arts, and served as ambassador-at-large for Taiwan for a few years.
Ms. Lu left her post in Kwang Hwa Information and Cultural Center in December 2009, but is continuously promoting cultural and economical exchanges between Taiwan and Hong Kong.
She is currently the chairman of Radio Taiwan International.
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* Antarctica: South of Myself ãÂÂÃ¥ÂÂ極÷極åÂÂãÂÂ. Taipei: China Times Publishing æÂÂå ±åºçÂÂ社, 2025.